Keyed automatic gain control system



2 MTF'. T f gf Feb. 19, 1952 K. R. WENDT 2,585,193

KEYED AUTOMATIC GAIN CONTROL SYSTEM Filed Aug. 19, 194e /ee- 6 /56 /60 y SYNC VEN/ML Vf/Fr/c//L .N50/20 nventor KARLR. WENN' Gttorneg Patented Feb. 19,.,1952

KEYED AUTOMATC GAIN CONTROL SYSTEM Karl R. Wendt, Hightstown, N. J., assignor to Radio Corporation o of Delaware f America, a corporation Application August 19, 1948, Serial No. 45.177

1 Claim. (Cl. 178-7.5)

This invention relates to automatic gain control systems for use in radio receivers adapted to receive image type signals having synchronizing and black level (blanking) information included therein, and more particularly forv use in present day television receiver systems.

The present invention deals more particularly with a novel form of keyed automatic gain conltrol for television receivers and operates to control the degree of amplification of the video signals afforded by the television receiver in accordance with the intensity of the radio carrier received during the synchronizing or blanking intervals. A

There is provided, through the use of the present invention, a novel automatic gain control arrangement substantially free from the effects of noise even when the receiver is operated in areas Where the noise level is extremely-high. By incorporating the present linvention in typical receiver circuits, operation of the receiver can be satisfactorily obtained without loss of video signal strength to the image viewing tube and Without the possibility of the receiver circuit being biased beyond cut-off (or blocked) as a result of strong surges of automatic gain control potential as may be experienced in the operation of certain other circuits providing automatic gain control action.

It is commonly known that automatic gain control `circuits for use in television receiving equipment diifer greatly from the more frequently encountered automatic gain control circuit embodied in receivers for sound broadcast signals. In the instance of the usual broadcast receiver designed for the reception of amplitude modulated carriers, it is deemed adequate that the automatic gain control potential be produced by electrical information gleaned from the average carrier intensity of the received radio signal. Clearly, such an automatic gain control circuit would not be satisfactory for controlling the gain of television receiver video channels as the average signal strength of the radio frequency car- Tier is a function of the average image or picture brilliance sometimes referred to as background level. As pointed out in the aforementioned applications by Karl R. Wendt, development of an automatic gaincontrol voltage in accordance with the average signal strength ofthe received radio-carrier would cause the gain to be changed not only in accordance with the signal intensity variations of the received radio carrier due to lundesirable fading or other atmospherical phenomena, but also in accordance with average picture brilliance transmitted.

Radio transmitted negative modulated tele- Vision signals normally include blanking pulses or vblack level information, which data is transinitted between eachimage line in combination with the line synchronizing pulse. This line sync of the image being pulse is most commonly superimposed upon the black level signal and these data are transmitted at some respectively predetermined constant but diierent carrier levels.` In common tele- Vision practice the sync pulse is transmitted at maximum carrier intensity, or 100 percent carrier amplitude, While the black level or blanking pulse is transmitted at approximately percent of the full carrier amplitude. The blanking impulse or black level signal in accordance with R. M. A. television synchronizing waveform standards is of the order of 16 to 18 percent of a line interval with the sync impulse having a period of approximately 8 percent of a line interval. Sync impulses when superimposed upon the blanking or black level signals are stationed between the extremities of the blanking interval so as to form what is commonly termed a, front porch and a back porch on the pedestal-like structure formed by the combined sync signal and blanking impulse. The front porch interval is approximately 2 percent of the line interval and represents the time between the leading edge of each black level signal and the leading edge of the line sync pulse, whereas the back porch interval of approximately 8 percent of a line interval is equivalent to the time interval between the end of the line sync pulse and the termination ofthe black level or blank out signal. [The amplitude of the radio frequency carrier as previously brought out is held constant during the transmission of all blanking and sync impulse information. During the transmission of image intelligence of the television signal, that is; during each line interval between successive blanking signals, the average amplitude of the transmitted radio frequency carrier is a function of the average light contained in the television image. Accordingly, if the reproduced image is to be predominantly dark, the average carrier amplitude will necessarily be greater than would be the case if the background level of the image were considerably lighter, such action of course being true only in the negative system of transmission wherein white picture information is transmitted at a lower carrier level than black level information. It is expedient, in order that the control of the gain of the receiver be in accordance with the proper aspects of the carrier, that the automatic gain control potential be developed such that its magnitude is a function of the intensity of the received carrier of the television signal during the blanking or sync intervals only, and as hereinbefore broughtout. not during the transmission of the picture or line information.

Since, the blanking and more particularly the sync signals are transmitted at greater radio frequency .intensity than image line information, it has been the general practice in television receivers to utilize some form of a peak rectifier which responds to those peak pulses of energy cause the peak rectier to respond to? -this undesirable signal energy. In such arrangement/if there is considerable noise picked up at the receiver the noise signal, as suchfespeciallyifflit has an amplitude in excess of the received carrier during the synchronizing intervals, will cause the peak detector to prcducean `abnormal increase in rectier energy and therefore p roduce abnormal increase'fin automatic gain contral potential which results in a generally undesirable"reduction`o`f vthe receiver sensitivity's va result of such noise; This of course `interferes with the proper operation of the receiverand produces uctuations of the reprodu'cdi'image brightness'with possible periods following the noise bursts during which'inadequate synchronizing information is appliedto the synchronizing circuits due to an abnomauy'nignreduction in receiver gain. This latter effect, Vto be later discussed, tends to produceY tearing out if other destructive disturbances V'in the reproduced image. Furthermorain 'such systems"tlie`automatic gain control`potential'thatis developed by each successive sync cr`blanking signalisgenerally stored on a'condens'er Yor4 applied to a circuit having a time constant 4where delay' 'action obtains such that the"'automaticl gain"'control potential can for all practicalpurposes be main'- tained constant throughout one )r""'m`c re` siicceeding field intervalsf Due to the Operation of the peak detector and the presence of this time delay circuit such a circuitV responds rapidly to high intensity noise pulses butdoes not allow the receiver to recover as quickly from the effects of noise as it responds tothe noisefwiththe result that proper gain of the' video channel is not re-established until after an interval corresponding to many-imagelineshas elapsed.

In" the presence of considerable noise such automatic gain control circuits are'not therefore entirely satisfactory since they respond t noise pulses as well as sync impulses and in`so vdoing are slow to recoverv from" sporadic'increa'sedj'energy effects represented'by the 'additional noise.

The present V`invention serves ltov 'overcome :the above related disadvantages by'rneansf'a simple arrangement employing" 'a' triode` vacuum 'tube connectedV as a fo'rmof ampl'itd gate which is placed underthe influence" of keying" plses and permits development of autonmtic"gain4 cohtrol potential only during'ti'rne""periods corresponding to blanking intervals "of 'tlie video signal. Thus the automatic"gaincontrol"circuit; while responsive to signal strength variations'of the radio carrier during' a part' of ltheseintervals, does not in any way respond to noise pulseV that may occur between the "transmission of` said blanking intervals. This keyed action prefer-A ably is timed to occur during" the back" porchportion of the blanking signal such that lan AGC voltage will be developed on a base divorcedrfrjom actual synchronizing information vand therefore not influenced by variations thereof. "This'feature alone is of considerable 'valiiefsincey the interval during which the`auto`rnatid'gain control circuit is elfected to respondl f the received si nai strength is only-ofthe Aorder or 51p the' une period timesothar during 95 I, of thetim'e during which thereceiver' is" operated the yautomatic gain'control circuit isfwholly responsive to any received signals..`

percentv Accordingly, the presentinvention, due to the above describedjkeying actiQmfwlf'display, ideally, 20 times the noise immunity possible in unkeyed gain control circuits. This increase of 20 times the noise immunity, however, may not be fully realized in practical applications due to sev- `eral minor factors which will become apparent `noise"wh=i'c"h'may'occur during the approximate 5 percent of time during which the automatic gain controlling circuit is keyed into response to the received signal. This follows since in the present system, if a nose'im'lse should be received duringthe 5 percent'interval, the circuit' is`so arranged as to'be relatively immune to rapid' increases" in'sig'nal intensity such' as vwhere short noise bursts' are superimposed onthe blanliring signalfbfu'tJ is quickI Ito responsel tothe return 'of signal conditions normal or to noise effects corresponding Vto reductions in signal strength. Since white noise"(tliat is, noise tending reduce the average'carrier level during the blanking periodl'fus Tarlyuencontered due vto y,the complexity .of "the requisite noise-signal 'conditions, 'this action,VV which is the reverse of commonly encountered AGC systems, does,l add favorably to itsfperfforinance." 'Apparatus' embodying the present invention `may also incorporate a protection against lcin'it'rcl' grid blocking'bf the receiver as a result' V'ofwrafpid lrises'in signal strength, in that a limit may ,be easily automatically established as tothe maXimum'AGC voltageproduceable by the circuit;

-It is a purpose of the present invention toV provide an improved automatic gain'control circuit, simple in operation for embodiment in radio'receivers adapted' to tran-slate andarci types of television signals wherein the circuit is rendered immune toKV noiseA for approximately 9,5' percent ofthe transmitted signalJ duration.

It is another purpose ofthe present 4invention to provide a new and improved automatic gain control circuit in which' the reference Ybasev for the developmentof 'automatic 'gain control potential is that of Y the television signal carrier strength eirhibited during`"transrnissicn of the blackr level signal.

Another purpose o f...iiho. present.. irivfniioii fe,- sides iii the provision of improved' siiioiiiai'io gain control circuit-for s. television receives wherein the oiriiii. Y,rondsrfi unresponsive io received signals during the iiiisivals bsivvssfi successive blank ing periods.

Another object offiho present iovoiiiiori rssidos in the provision ofwoovol automatic sois control circuit for a television receiver wherein potentials ofi the order adequate to block translation of videro signals' throughI said ,receiver7 are prevented,fromdeveloprnentj as a result of automatic gain 'control action.

Ii'is another purpose, of the pros/...ont irivoiiiioii to providefa simple and economical system for automatic gain control operation which reqnires a minimumof apparatus and yet achieves all of the previous obieoisxsotxfortii hereinabove- Still another object ofthe present invention resides in the provision of a' novel automatic gain control circuit employing a triode vacuum tube, saidv circuit beingf'suitable for' incorporation' in standard" television' receiving'circuits to provide generationof an atom'atio"gainncontrol Ypotential whose alternation 'in potential' due to increase in the intermediate frequency amplifier.

'signal 'strength is markedly slcw whereas changes in the produced control voltage due to a decrease in received carrier is markedly fast.

The novel features which are believed to be characteristic of the present invention are set forth in the appended claims, the invention itself, however, as to both its organization and method of operation will be best understood through the teaching of the following Vdescription especially when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings wherein:

Figure 1 is one embodiment of the present invention as applied to a conventional television receiving circuit;

Figure 2 shows another form of practicing the present invention; and,

Figure 3 shows still another embodimentJ of the present invention as practiced in connection with a conventional television receiver.

In the drawings like elements are assigned like reference characters.

Referring now to Figure 1, there is indicated in block I certain components of a conventional television receiver including the R. F. amplifier,

the oscillator, the first detector or converter and The signals are picked up by antenna |2 and through the medium of transmission line |4 are applied to the input of the receiver, as shown. The output of the intermediate frequency amplifier included in block I0 is suitably connected through path I6 to the video demodulator |8 which demodulates the video intermediate frequency carrier to produce the image signals including blanking and sync information and subsequently applies the same, via a direct current coupling path 20, to grid 22 of vacuum tube 24. The vacuum tube 24 is connected for operation as a video frequency amplifier being typically provided with frequency compensation byvmeans of elements 26, 28, and 30 connected in series with the polarizing potential for the anode 32. Also connected in series with the polarizing potential path for the. anode, is decoupling resistor 34 which acts in conjunction `with by-pass condenser 36 to isolate video amplifier plate current changes from the +150 volt polarizing potential terminal 38.

Establishment of the plate current characteristie region over which the video amplifier tube 24 is to operate is accomplished through adjustment of the tap 40 on potentiometer 42, the potentiometer being connected in series with resistor 44 as a bleeder to ground across a bias supply potential made available at terminal 50. As will be seen later, this potentiometer in combination with the action of the overall AGC system provides a suitable picture contrast control which does not aifect the picture black level but only offers control over the picture white level. The video signal including synchronizing information applied to the grid 52 of the kinescope 54 is also applied to the input of the sync separator 56 via circuit path 58. In accordance with conventional television receiver design the output of the sync signal separator 56 is connected with the vertical and horizontal deflection driving generators 60 and 62 respectively. The function of these defiection drive generators is to supply a suitable form ofsawtooth voltage for conventional defiection of the electron beam in the kinescope 54. The output of the vertical deflection drive generator 60 is then applied to the vertical deflection output stage 64 which is connected by line 66 to the vertical deflection winding of a deectien yoke 68. Whereas the componentsv of the defictiii output stage 64 are conventional inl nature and hence clearly representable in block-diagram form, the horizontal deflection output stage con- .5 nected for excitation of the horizontal deflection yoke 68 isvto also serve, as hereinafter described, in the capacity of a control for the subject AGC system.

Accordingly the output of the horizontal de- !o flection drive generator 62 is applied to the grid of vacuum tube 12, suitable grid return impedance being illustrated by resistor '|4 connected with ground potential. The screen grid' 16 is connected with a positive source of potential inlr dicated by +s. g., While polarizing potentialfor the anode 18 is supplied through deiiection output transformer primary winding 80, from a source of positive potential having a terminal indicated at 82. In a conventional manner the defiection signal for the deiiection yoke- 68 is supplied from the secondary winding 84 ofthe output transformer 86 through line 88, across which is connected a suitable damping circuit 90 to improve circuit efficiency. A circuit arrangement (not shown) may also be associated with the output transformer 86 for producing high voltage for the kinescope or image tube. Associated with the horizontal output deflection circuit is an auxiliary winding 92 which operates to supply a series of pulses 94 derived from the horizontal deection circuit operation. It is to be noticed that the video signal at th output of the video amplifier 24 applied to the synchronizing separator 56 is through the same :"5 circuit path 58, in conjunction with circuit path 96, applied to the grid 98 of AGC triode |00. The form of the video signal-voltage here applied is illustrated by the curve |0| shown in relative time relationship with the production w of keying pulses from the horizontal output transformer auxiliary secondary winding 92. Accordingly, it is seen that the keying pulses 94, `applied to the cathode ||0 of the vacuum tube |00, are not only in a direction to drive the cathode negatively during their generation, but are timed, relative to the received video signal |00, to occur during the back porch interval Y|02 of the blanking and synchronizing signal pedestal l.component Since the D. C. potential applied to the grid 52 of the kinescope 54 is positive with respect to ground by an amount equal to the difference between +150 volts and the voltage drop across the el-ements 28, 30, and 34, the cathode 53 of the kinescope 54 and the cathode I0 of tube |00 must be placed at a positive potential in excess of their associated grid potentials. This is to provide negative control grid bias. In the case of the kinescope 54, a conventional form of brightness control is shown comprising potenti- O ometer ||2 connected in series with bleeder resistor ||4 and a positive potential source ||5 of +150 volts. Therefore by adjustment of thetap ||6 of potentiometer ||2, the negative bias on the grid 52 of the kinescope 54 may be varied Vto control the brightness or intensity of the beam within. Y In the case of the AGC vacuum tube |00 the cathode ||0 is returned to a positive potential considerably in excess of that existing on the grid 98 by simply returning the lower end of the auxiliary secondary Winding 92 to potentiometer |20 connected across +150 volts to ground. Positioning of the tap |22 on the potentiometer |20 will allow a net negative bias to be applied to the grid 98 of the AGC triode and in normal `operafunuerlsucn bifascut-ofr conditions, if the key- 'i'ngvprulses 794 '(p'oled to 'drive the cathode H0 "'negativly) are ofsuc'ie'nt amplitude, y'theyw'ill overcome the negative cut-01T bias` on the"tube and establish platei'cur'ren't conduction'dur- =ing` the intervals o'f their production. Correspondin'gly then, with fthe arrangement shown wherein the -keying pulses 94 occur once 'during 'each masking' interval and phased Wimpie .back porch portion thereof, l'the ltube |00 Willb'e'ntiered conductive during'this period. Inasrriuch 'as the'bla'nk out'sign'al |02 extends in a`neg`ative direction on'the 'grid 98, the net plate 'current pulse'(show'n'at |22) in vacuum itube |00 "due 'to 'thecoinbined signals 94 and IOI, will be of 'an Qamplitude inverselyV proportional to 'the blanking level |02 during keyed operation of l'the tubef 00. As the V'pulses 94 are of constant iam'plitude, a --reduction inreceived signal strength 'attended by a ydecrease in the'amplitude of the'video signal '|0|, lwill permit nthe pulse 94 vto drive the tube |00 'into'a heavierstate of conduction and hence produce f'g'reater amplitude 'plate current pulses |22; conversely an increase 'in signal strength Aduring vthe'keyed conduction of vacuum tube |00 Vfwill 'reduce the amplitude of the plate current pulse |22. `In"'view of this the 'anode |30 of the 4Vvacuum 'tube |00 'is connected to a load resistor '|34 which in turn is connected to a polarizing potential |'32 o'f, for example +150 volts. Across the resistor |34 is fplacedfa 'storage condenser |36. Current pulses through the load resistor |34 Atends to reduce the potential across the ter- 'min'als of 'the storage 'condenser Y|36 as a result 'o'f the voltage ydrop 'eiect across 'resistor |34 caused bythe average current value of the unidirectional pulses.

The voltage then appearing across storage condenser |36 being positive with respect to ground therefore varies inversely with the intensity of 'the signal received 'during fthe application or" the vkeying'pulses 94 and provides a 'convenient source for deriving a'suitable negative potential for va'pplica-tion to the R. F. and I. F. amplifiers oi block I0. l

This development of a negative control potential 'from a positive control potential is -accomplished by means of 'gas tubes |40 and |42 tconneeted in series Jwith resistor |50 to a source of negative potential |52 and D. C. "amplifier |54. Sirice-thevoltage drop facro'ss the series connection of 'gas tubes |49 and v|42 remains'constant fa's'long as thetubes remain ionized '(this action being wellknown to the art), the potential apl'plied "to 'the grid |56 of D. C. amplifier vacuum tube |54 will b'e directly proportional vto'the voltage-across 'the storage condenser 135, although being negative 'withrespec't to 'grounddue to the negative V100 *volt fpotential of the supply ter- |`ininal |52.` If Ythen'the cathode |58 of the vacluum tube 1|56 --i's fc'onnecteda's 'shown' (at l 60) to a source of approximately 50 volts negativepotential, atthe Ianode- |62 thereof, `connected through load resistance |64 to ground, there'may then be "developed across the Vload 'resistor 164 ra 'negative control potential of fa lfew volts suitable for vrAGC control of 'the v'amplifiers indicated in `block l0.

The `AGC action so obtained is readily ldiscernible through consideration 4of the various circuit responses under the conditions of a 're- Lductio'n linffsignal astren'g'thras applied to 'the .grid "52 fof the -kinesc'opef54- In'fsuch 'a case thefvideo signal |0| as "applied to the AGC 'triode |00 would b'e reduced inarnplitude'and consequently effect an 'increase inthe amplitudelof the fcur- -rent l'pulses |22 appearing vin the plate circuit l'oflthe Etriode. 4Consequently the voltage 'across storagecapacitor 316 would decrease and 'there'- fby cause the `negative voltage with vrespect'to ground-existing ongrid |56 to become more ynegative. This increase -in the -negativeibiason D. C. "amplifier r'|54 -will -thenfcause `its''out`put 'volta'ge'appearing across resistor y|64to Ibecome more positive and thereby apply: lessfbias through AGC bus |66 to the 1R. F. and I. F. 'amplifiersineluded in block I0. This'decrea'se vin bias'caus- 'ing "an `increase Ain :amplifier rgain IVconsequently "corrects for the decrease'insignal'strength. 'The condenser |68 in serieswith :resistor l|'|0,"-said series 'combination being connected across storage capacitor |36, serves as a damping network to prevent the A'GC circuit yfrom establishing sustained oscillation 'or motorboating.

A similar arrangement is shown'in Figure 2 where, however, the Y'gas tubes '|40 at l'42 have been eliminated and 'replaced by a diode rectifying-circuit associated'with diode |80. Referring to Figure '1 again, thefcurrent pulses |22Lshown at the output of the AGC 'triode |00'wou1d, in

i the 'absence of low A. C. impedance a'crossload resistor |34 (as 4presented 'fby storage Vcapacitor |36 and 'damping network '|68)"pro"duce` a'series of negative going'pulses such as the voltage curve |82 in Figure 2. Sinc'einFigure 2 `thevanode |30 of the vacuum "tube |00 receives its polarizing potential through v'a'load resistance |84Jthere will appear at the `v'anode |30 a -series of potential pulses |82 extending inthe negative direction as a result of the combined keying pulsel and video signal action provided -by the AGCitriode |00. Asin Figure 1, reduction of signal strength will increase the magnitude of current pulses .in the lpla'te circuit ofthe triode |00 andcon'sequently increase 'the amplitude of the negative pulses there produced. These negatively extending pulses are coupled by means of capacitor |85 to the cathode |86 of diode |80. Since the anode |88 of diode |80 is connected through a series load comprising resistors |90 and |92, an increase of theamplitude'of the pulses |82 will cause amore negative voltage to be developed across storage condenser |94 vand hence increase the .negative bias on the grid of the D. C. ampliiier tube |96. Since vthe cathode of the triode |96 is `connected with tlf-100 volts at 'terminal |93, this increase inlgrid bias vdue to areduction yin'signal strength will cause the negative AGC `potential appearing across resistor |98 to become more positive 'and hence produce the required change in television receiver gain. As before the-series connection of a condenser and resistor Aof suitable value form a damping network 200 which is placed in shunt withthe storage condenser |94 to discourage oscillation of the `AGC circuit. l

`Examination of the'embodiment'shown in Figure 3 reveals a pulse detection and storage circuit identical to that shown in Figure 2, the only difference in the embodiment of Figure 3 being that the keying pulses 94 are applied in shunt with the cathode circuit of vacuum tube -|00. Suitable Apositive potential for the cathode 0 is vprovided through the cathode resistor 2|0. which in turn is connected to the tap |22 of potentiometer |20. The keying pulses 94 as developed across the auxiliary secondary 92 are then applied to cathode resistor 2IEI through the coupling condenser 220, one end of the auxiliary winding 92 being grounded in this embodiment. This latter arrangement shown in Figure 3, is suitable for applications wherein it is desirable to pass no D. C. through the horizontal output transformer auxiliary winding 92. Obviously the method of applying keying pulses to the AGC triode iil as shown in Figures l and 2 is not only more economical and straightforward but manifestly demands less power from the deection circuit since the keying pulses are not caused to act across a resistive load, as shown for example in Figure 3.

It has hereinbefore been noted that the potentiometer 42 acts in the capacity of a picture contrast control which operates to control the white level peaks of the video signal as applied to kinescope but in no way alters the black level of the video signal. This action follows by reason of the manner in which the present AGC system functions to respond to received video signal strength only during the black level portions thereof. It is necessary for the proper operation of the present invention that the direct current level at the video demodulator or second detector DC be preserved up to the grid of the AGC triode |00. Consequently, it may then be assumed that some discrete value of plate current of the video amplifier 24 represents black picture level on the kinescope 34. Therefore, as long as the absolute voltage level of the peaks of the keying pulses 94 (referenced to ground) as well as the DC potential of the cathode l lil (referenced to ground) remains constant, the absolute voltage (referenced to ground) of black level of the received video signal as applied to the kinescope grid 52 will necessarily remain constant. This, of course, presupposes that the input signal to the television receiver is such to render the AGC system operative in a linear portion of its characteristic. Consequently, the potentiometer l2@ which alters the potential of the cathode of the AGC triode lill! serves in the capacity of a black level control and as such does not in any way ei'ect the white level of the video signal. With the potentiometer |20 set to provide a xed value of grid bias on the AGC triode i90 and the amplitude of the keying pulses 94 held constant, variation of the contrast control potentiometer 42 only provides control over the zero signal plate current of the pentode 24 and in so doing alters only the maximum posi` tive swing of the video signal relative to a Xed black level established by the AGC system.

From the foregoing description, it is seen that the applicant has provided a simple, economical and eiective form of television receiver automatic gain control system which utilizes a triode vacuum tube in conjunction with a source of keying pulses derived from the television receiver kinescope electron beam deflection circuit.

What is claimed is:

In a television receiving circuit for receiving and demodulating television signals which have a video component and a synchronizing component, a point of reference potential, an automatic gain control circuit for controlling the gain of the receiving circuit in accordance with a gain control potential, said gain control circuit having an output terminal connected to said receiving circuit so that a positive swing of said output terminal relative to said point of reference 10 potential will increase the gain of said receiving circuit, a signal source having an output terminal adapted to deliver a demodulated television signal having its synchronizing component extending in a negative going direction relative to said point of reference potential, an electromagnetic beam deflection systern for said receiver coupled to said signal source output terminal for synchronization by the demodulated synchronizing component of said television signai, said de- Flection system including an output transformer for coupling said deection system to a television receiver deflection yoke, a pick up winding on said output transformer, said pick up winding having at least two extremities, one of said extremities being connected to said point of reference potential while the other of said extremities is free, said pick up winding being so polarized that there appears at said free extremity at the end or" each deection cycle a pulse that is negative going relative to said point of reference potential, an electron tube having at least an anode, cathode and control electrode, a connection from said electron tube cathode to the free end `of said pick up winding, a connection from said electron tube control electrode to said sig nal source output terminal, a power supply terminal having a positive potential with respect to said point of reference potential, a resistance connected from said positive power supply terminal to said electron tube anode, a capacitor connected from said electron tube anode to said point or reference potential, a negative power lfrom said electron tube anode t0 said negative power supply terminal through a dropping resister, a direct current amplier having an input terminal and an output terminal, said amplifier output terminal delivering a signal which is degrees out of phase with a signal applied to said amplifier input terminal, a connection from said dropping resistor to said direct current amplifier input terminal, a connection from said direct current amplier output terminal to said receiving circuit, and biasing means connected between the cathode and control electrode of said electron tube for rendering said electron tube non-conducting except during the negative going pulses appearing at the free end of said pick up Winding.

KARL R. WENDT.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

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